Bonnaroo Day 4: Festival Food

By the time I woke up on Sunday morning I was pretty much ready to call it a weekend and head home. Bonnaroo really knocks the life out of you. After staying up super late to see Empire of the Sun (the best act besides Paul McCartney), I was exhausted. I spent most of Sunday morning walking around like a zombie, punctuated with periods of random naps. I was able to pull myself together to catch half of Jeff the Brotherhood. They put on a really great show and it made me so happy to see the Nashville locals play a big tent. I hung around to see Wild Nothing and Holy Ghost! as well. Wild Nothing was fun to see live and they really appreciated having the chance to play Bonnaroo. Holy Ghost!, on the other hand  looked bored out of their mind and seemed as apathetic as you'd expect a Brooklyn band to be. The singer spent most of the set with a cigarette dangling out of his mouth. TOO COOL FOR SCHOOL.

By this time of the day I was hungry and decided to get one of the ubiquitous Bonnaroo arepas. These arepas are greasy yellow corn cakes with mozzarella cheese inside. Honestly, they looked kind of gross, but boy did they taste really REALLY good. I guess it's true; things that are bad for you are the ones that taste good. I felt that I could've eaten two of these, but I'm happy I stopped at one because I know for a fact my stomach would hate me for it.

After my obligatory arepa adventure I headed down to the main stage to catch The National. They put on an amazing performance and really got the crowd riled up. They played a good mix of songs from The Boxer and High Violet, as well as some standouts from their new album. There were a few moments when I teared up a bit, but hey, The National always makes me cry. It's a mark of a good band.

Source

I was able to run over after The National to see most of David Byrne and St. Vincent. I was lucky enough to see them earlier this year at the Ryman and I had a great time seeing them again, especially since they worked Wild Life into their set. I plan on naming my first child after Mr. Byrne. 

I walked back to catch Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers who took the normal Sunday night jam band slot. Both Tom and his guitarist Mike Campbell were really noodly on some songs, my guess to satisfy the hippie masses who wanted Phish or Widespread panic. The massive sing along to 'Free Falling' was EPIC and a perfect ending to my weekend at Bonnaroo.

But since Steve & I hadn't had dinner yet, we couldn't go home without shoving something else in our faces. After many recommendations from the American Poster Institute guys (Boss Construction, Lil Tuffy, and Methane Studios) I decided to get some pizza from Spicy Pie. We got the regular pepperoni slice because they were out of their namesake Spicy Pie. It was OK for festival food, but nothing to write home about. The slice itself was pretty big, but for $6 it better be!

I'm home now and trying to catch up on sleep and life. Getting readjusted to the real world is hard. I would like to extend a big thanks to the folks at 44 Communications and Big Hassle Media for taking a chance on a local Nashville food blogger!

Bonnaroo Day 3: EatBox and Roberta's

Have I really been here for 3 days already? Somehow I feel like I've both been here forever and just arrived at the same time. This is the closest thing to sleep away camp an adult can get. Everything is just stating to blur together. On the plus side, I feel like I finally figured out where everything is located. Which is a totally perfect thing to do on your absolute last day here. C’est la vie.

In the morning I was able to catch Cults, a few songs from Two Gallants and most of Death Grips. With so much awesome going on at the same time I was just running around from tent to tent. Because the day was really hot, I retreated to some shade for a tad bit of shut eye.

I went to EatBox for lunch. They specialize in meatball meals, either in a bowl or on a sandwich. After talking to the counter lady about her recommendations, I ordered the PCB (pork and beef balls, hashbrowns, bacon, and a honey scallion sauce). I was totally underwhelmed by this meal. The meatballs themselves were soggy and rather bland. It appears that if they were seasoned, their spices were washed off in the liquid they were sitting in. The hashbrowns weren’t anything to write home about and reminded me of something that I would get in a Waffle House. It also appeared to be missing the honey sauce that should have been splashed on top. I guess the lack of line should have been an indication that this food truck would be less than stellar. 

Credit: Danny Clinch

I was able to see all of Bjork’s set, which was amazing. She had a full choir and a calliope on stage. I really enjoyed the orchestration of her songs live; everything was different than on the album, making this a totally unique experience. I’ve really wanted to see her since middle school, so this was a really special treat for me. Since I wasn’t really interested in seeing Jack Johnson after her, I took a nice break and relaxed with some friends.

Steve and I decided to have a late dinner at Roberta’s pizza. Roberta’s is located inside the Christmas Barn, which has air conditioning, is decked-out in twinkle lights and has a DJ. We tried the margarita pizza- one with pepperoni (which was actually salami), and one without. I don’t know how Roberta’s can make something so good so far away from their restaurant, but they totally do! This was an absolutely perfect pizza. We kept raving about their tomato sauce, which tasted fresh, plain and simple. What would I have to do to convince Roberta’s to open up a location down in Nashville!?

Credit: Steve Cross

My final band of the night, who didn’t take the stage until after 2:30am, was Empire of the Sun. EotS are basically David Lynch’s Dune: The Band. This band was the soundtrack to my marathon training so I was totally giddy like a schoolgirl when I saw they were on the bill. They were nothing but EPIC. The costumes, the dancers, the video screen, the whole production was better than some Broadway shows I’ve seen. I’m sure there is a very slim chance that I will get to see them perform ever again since they're from Australia, but I would be willing to travel pretty far to get a glimpse of them in the future.

Bonnaroo Day 2: Fatback Collective and Cracked

Recapping day 2 already? Bonnaroo is the ultimate time suck. Yesterday I got up and heard the news that Mumford and Sons officially cancelled, and were being replaced with Jack Johnson. So, since neither were bands I'm interested in, my plans (taking a nap during the Sat. headliner) didn't change. What I did do is try the Fatback Collective's pulled pork sandwich for lunch.

I've had my fair share of pulled pork sandwiches over the years, but this might be the most tender, juicy one I've had. You can taste the slow cooked piles of love that went into this. The pork had the most perfect color and not one bit was dry or overcooked. It was simply prepared with a dash of sauce and a couple of pickles, but when the meat is this damn good, you don't need to cover it up with anything.

After my fairly early lunch I headed to catch Charli XCX. This girl is a teeny tiny powerhouse that dresses like an extra from Clueless. Plaid skirt? Check. Crop top? Check. Massive platform sneakers? Check. Charli XCX is pure pop music and I feel like a super tween fangirl for liking her as much as I do. To prove how much she loved the 90s, Charli covered Backstreet Boy's I Want It That Way. 

And I finally got to see DIIV! They have a really beautiful guitar sound, and according to a garbled statement early in the set, their keyboard player quit that morning. Despite their setbacks, I really liked their set. After DIIV, I wandered over to see Foals who put on the best show I've seen at Bonnaroo so far. There was so much energy and passion in their set that the crowd went wild lost their minds. I was for sure bopping my head and screaming along. If you ever have the opportunity to see Foals, DO IT.

Since I can't go more than 3 hours without eating, I stopped back by the Food Truck Oasis to sample something from Cracked. There are few things I like more in this world than a perfectly cooked egg and I know I'm gonna love a truck that makes this humble food their star ingredient. I did what I had to do and ordered the Goy Vey (bacon, hard salami, hash brown and a fried egg with sweet and spicy cream cheese on a ciabatta roll). This was glorious and for sure the best breakfast-for-dinner I've had in a long time. The sweet and spicy cream cheese made this not your regular run of the mill breakfast sandwich. The only downfall was the hash brown was fairly thin and hard to discern amongst all that fluffy bread.

What Bonnaroo at Night looks like to me

After food I checked out Wu Tang Clan for my friend Jeff who insisted I see it. There were 15 dudes on the stage and a whole bunch of kids making the W with their hands. I think this whole show went over my head. Then it was onto Sir Paul McCartney who put on an epic set that was everything I expected and more (I honestly can't say anything about Paul that hasn't been said before, so I won't even try). Would I be lame to say I teared up a bit during Hey Jude? After Paul I wandered around catching bits of the late night shows including The XX, ZZ Top and Pretty Lights. This is why it's so easy for your day to get away from you at Bonnaroo!

Now it's time for me to head back into Centeroo to see some more bands! 

Bonnaroo Day 1: Gastropod and Roti Rolls

Good morning folks! Well, let’s just say that Bonnaroo is off to a roaring start. We got up bright and early yesterday, grabbed our friends and headed down to Manchester. We got our tent set up in time to see local Nashville boy Richie kill it on the Miller Light Stage. He played with an expanded band that included the ladies from Birdcloud and Tristen.

After Richie, I waited around Centeroo to try and catch DIIV who I was really excited about seeing, only to find out they missed their plane and had to reschedule. Hopefully I’ll be able to catch them today!

So to cheer myself up after missing DIIV I went to GastroPod over in the Food Truck Oasis for a snack. I ordered the white corn cake, which was a very fancy arepa. Arepas are ubiquitous at Bonnaroo and seems to be the kid's food of choice. But this wasn’t your garden variety/food vendor stall greasy arepa. The dough was light and fluffy and had not a bit of grease. The cheese on top was fresh and tasted vaguely of goat cheese. The slaw on top, made of cabbage and carrots, remained crisp despite clearly being soaked a long time in vinegar. That slaw was the jam and they should put it on everything...

And look at that! They do! (get out of my head GastroPod) Steve got their Dirty Chips, comprised of potato chips, a paprika based spiced mayo, and that amazing slaw. I wasn’t blown away by this, but for a $4 snack at Bonnaroo it’s a pretty good deal.

After the snack we went to check out Araabmuzik, who has highly entertaining lighting fast fingers.  He is one of the best “one dude on the stage with equipment” acts I’ve seen. HE WAS ACTUALLY DOING STUFF! Amazing, right?! The crowd obviously liked it too because there was some early in the day crowd surfing.

Then we went back to the campground to partake in a crawfish boil. It was a great communal experience because I was able to talk to a lot of people as we waited along the tables for our food. Once those crawfish were dropped people went crazy on them. It was even a few people’s first time having crawfish and I think they really enjoyed the experience. Me on the other hand, let’s just say that I ate myself sick and I won’t be eating crawfish for the foreseeable future.

After I made sure I sufficiently stunk from crawfish, I made my way back to the stages to check out Japandroids. I really liked their last album and it was my first time seeing them live. There was lots of bouncing around and WHOO OHHH OHHS going on. I left their set a bit early to see Father John Misty who put on a really good show. His stage moves were sexy as hell, although he kind of looked like an epileptic belly dancer at points.

After Father John I met up with Steve in the food truck area again where we got another late night snack. I feel like Bonnaroo is designed for food grazing, seeing as there are lots of tempting small options everywhere you look. We went to the Roti Rolls truck where I ordered the Thurman Murman. (Braised pork, creole mac & cheese, and kimchi).

I’ll be honest, the combination of things inside the Roti was weird. The kimchi made everything taste like vinegar which did not mix well with the mac and cheese. But the Roti bread itself? THAT WAS AMAZING. I feel like this truck should just have  a basket full of Roti so I can order that as a snack every night. 

I would say I had a fairly successful first day! (And so did my stomach)

Bonnaroo: The Music

So Bonnaroo isn't all about the food. People generally go for the music if I'm not mistaken. Those crazy kids and their rock n' roll. Since I can't stuff my face every hour of the day, I plan on seeing my fair share of music. And let's just say that this year's line-up is pretty amazing. It's going to be very hard to choose! So in no particular order, here is a list of bands that I would love to catch. And I've even made a playlist! Check it out here!

Paul McCartney

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Bjork

Wilco

The National

The XX

Grizzly Bear

Empire of the Sun

Tame Impala

Foals

Father John Misty

Holy Ghost!

Cults

Four Tet

Japandroids

Death Grips

DIIV

Charli XCX

Am I missing anyone that you think I should see? Let me know!

Bonnaroo: Food Truck Oasis

 

The line-up for the Bonnaroo Food Truck Oasis has been announced! I'm sure to get most of my meals here. I'm really excited to sample food from all across the nation (I'm probably not going to be too excited about waiting in long lines, but c'est la vie).

Eatbox (Asheville, North Carolina) a prize truck known for top-notch meatballs. Serving: Meatballs, Meatball Sandwich, Breakfast

Gastropod (Miami, Florida), a gourmet food truck with fusion cooking and an emphasis on local, seasonal ingredients; Serving: Short Rib Sliders, Pulled Pork Sandy, Curry in a Hurry, White Corn Cake

Petro’s Chili & Chips (Knoxville, Tennessee), loved for its original take on chili bowls, known as Petro Bowls; Serving: Petro Chili & Chips (regular, BBQ Chicken, Buffalo Chicken, Baja)

Roti Rolls (Charleston, South Carolina), centered on creating seasonal fusion food that is Asian, Indian, Caribbean, Latin, and Southern inspired; Serving: Roti Rolls featuring locally-sourced meats, vegetables and cheeses

Savory and Sweet (Knoxville, Tennessee), gourmet Southwestern cuisine; Serving: Specialty tacos (Jumpin Java, Fried Avocado, Cuban Picadillo), Fried Cheesecake

The Big Cheese (Arlington, Virginia), known for gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches made with all-natural, local ingredients; Serving: Gourmet Grilled Cheese (Midnight Moon, Full Vermonty, Lemon Fig, Caprese, Thrilled Cheese), Watermelon Feta Salad, Breakfast

The Cracked Truck (Urbana, Illinois), a new twist on breakfast food; Serving: Gourmet Egg Sandwiches, tater tots

I'm the most excited about trying out Gastropod, as it has been on my radar for a while. Savory and Sweet sounds interesting too- I'll eat anything that's served in a taco!

I'm Going to Bonnaroo!

That's right folks! This humble Nashville food blogger is heading to Manchester with a tent and an empty stomach, eating things from trucks so you don't have to. I also plan to get my fill of good music and fashion in as well. Over the past few years, the food at Bonnaroo has been getting better and better, so this year I decided to give that aspect of the festival some well-deserved attention!

So get ready for a slew of 'Roo posts folks, because to whet your appetite, I'll have a few preview posts between now and the festival. I'm most excited for the Fat Back Collective's collaboration with Roberta's (one of my favorite establishments in NYC!) and Snake and Jake's Christmas Barn, where there will be a whole hog roasted every day. That means lots of pig for yours truly. I plan to get all cave woman on some ribs! I'll also give you the scoop on the famed Food Truck Oasis, as well as the eleventh year of the Broo'ers Festival, not to mention my must-see list of bands! 

Stay tuned!